To be honest, I had actually never heard of Penta until a girlfriend recommended it for our Friday afternoon catch up. Since I rarely head to Elsternwick, it was never on my radar, but so glad I have the opportunity to check it out.
ATMOSPHERE & SERVICE
Located down a side street from Glen Huntley Road, Penta is the sister cafe to the popular siblings of Legacy Camberwell, MOB Espresso, Temperance Society and Tinker Northcote. We arrived around 12:30pm on a Friday afternoon to a busy cafe with only a hand full of tables free. The atmosphere was buzzing with coffee drinkers and foodies enjoying the start of the weekend.
The cafe focuses on an industrial minimalist vibe with brushed concrete floors, exposed ceilings and a modern coffee bar. White walls and ceilings with black accents from the tables and chairs create a clean feel with loads of natural light coming through the front windows.
I found the service a bit inconsistent, although everyone was friendly and smiling. We waited quite a while for our orders to be taken and had to ask one of the waitresses if we could order since no one was coming to our table.
FOOD
Penta is known for their extremely photographic dishes, which taste as amazing as they look. My girlfriend ordered the Nutella Pannacotta, which I WISH I got a photo of! It looked absolutely stunning, and with a quick Insta search, it’s also one of the most photographed dishes on their menu.
Although I would have loved to have Nutella Pannacotta for brekky, I did need something a bit more nutritious to fuel me for the busy day ahead. Instead, I decided to go with their second popular dish ‘Chilli Scrambled Eggs’ served with coriander (which I have removed), bacon, cherry tomatoes, Vietnamese mint, fried shallots and parmesan on sourdough toast. I loved the crunch from the fried shallots and the specks of chilli gave a slight punch of heat, which thankfully wasn’t too overpowering.
Overall, I’m so glad my girlfriend had recommended we try Penta. The atmosphere was stunning, the food delicious, and although the service was a bit hit and miss, they were still friendly.
